Railroad-track.



' PATENTED APR. 26, 1904.

W. GOLDIE. RAILROAD TRACK.

APPLICATION FILED NOV.19, 1902.

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ZUztnascma No. 758,523. PATENTED APR. 26, 1904.

W. GOLDIB. RAILROAD TRACK.

APPLIOATIOH FILED NOV. 19, 1902.

TNE norms PETER! 00., momurna. WASNINGTON n. c.,

UNITEI) STATES Patented April 26, 1904.'

PATENT OFFICE.

RAILROAD-TRACK.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 758,523, dated Apri1.26,1904;.

Application filed November 19, 1902. Serial No. 131,918- (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM GoLDIE, a resident of Wilkinsburg, in thecounty of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania,have invented a new anduseful Improvement in Railroad- Iracks; and I do hereby declare thefollowing to be a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

My invention relates to railroad-tracks, its

and one which is not so liable to sag or weaken,

at the joints. Though theweight of the rails themselves has alsoincreased in late years, it has been found that there is a limit as tothe .height of the rail above the tie, increase of ,5-

such height increasing the leverage upon the rail-head and the liabilityof rocking of the have believed that the limit as to the weight andstiffness of the rail has been reached.

By the present invention I am enabled to provide a much stronger andstilfer railroadtrack adapted to carry heavier loads and also topositively maintain the gage of the track in the cross-ties and formingsupports for the rails which rest thereon, the supporting-barspreferably having shoulders extending upwardly along their outer edgesagainst whichthe rail-flanges fit and the rails being thus held to exactgage, while the rails are braced 5 and stiffened by the supporting-barsand enbe hereinafter more particularly set forth and claimed.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I willdescribe the same more fully, referring to the accompanying drawings, inwhich Figure 1 is a perspective view of the improved track; Fig. 2 is aside view of the same.

Fig. 3 is a perspective View of the supporting base-bar. 4 4, Fig. 2;Fig. 5 is a cross-section illustrating some modifications in thebase-bar; and Fig. ,6 is a side view, on a smaller scale, illustratingthe respective positions of the joints of the rails and base-bars.

In the railroad-tiesQ at suitable distances apart, so as to give theexact gage of track desired, I form the grooves or kerfs 3, such kerfsbeing either formed in the making of the ties or cut in the ties whenforming part of the road-bed, such as Where the invention is applied toa track already laid. The grooves or kerfs 3 have either straight ortapering side walls, conforming substantially in shape to the dependingribs of the supporting-bars hereinafter described. The ties may ofcourse be of any suitable material, the invention being illustrated inconnection with the ordinary wooden railroad-ties. Extending across theties above the kerfs so made therein are the rail-supporting bars 4:, onwhich rest the rails 5, which are shown as the ordinary rails havingheads 6, webs 7 and flanges 8. The supporting-bars areeach provided witha downwardly-extending rib 9,which fits into the kerf 3 in the tie,extending across the tie, as such rib portion 9 is made continuous. Thestrengthening-rib 9 has parallel or tapering side walls, beingpreferably made slightly tapering, and the kerf 3 of the cross-tie oflike form to receive the same and form aclose fit therewith, so that asthe rib fits into the kerf it wedges therein slightly and closes thesame to prevent entrance of water. Extending along the outer edge of thebase-bar 4 is the upwardly-projecting shoulder 10, against which theouter edge of the flange 8 fits, sothat the base-bar is adapted toreceive the thrust of the rail in Fig. I is a cross-section on the linecarrying its load. This shoulder 10 may either be at or close to theouter edge, being shown both ways. \V hen the shoulder is formed at theouter edge, as in Fig. 4, the spikes 11 secure both the rail andbase-bar to the ties. The base-bar may, however, have the lip 12extending beyond the shoulder 10 and the extension 13 on its inner edgebeyond the seat for the rail-flange, and the spikes 14 15 engagetherewith independently of the rail, as shown in Fig. 5, the base-barsbeing punched or notched, as at 16, for the passage of the spikesholding the rail. In the laying of the track the base-bars are arrangedto break joint with the rails-that is, the rails have their jointslocated at one point and the base-bars at another, so that the base-barsextend continuously under the rails at the joint, and thereby supportthe rails at the joints and overcome the necessity of any specialbracing against the vertical deflection at such points. The rails can ofcourse be connected by any suitable joint, the joint shown in thedrawings being the ordinary angle-bar 17, fitting against the webportion 7 and over the flange portion 8 of the rail and connectedthereto by bolts and nuts, as at 18. The rail-joint may either be formedsuspended or supported, as found desirable, though this is not importantin View of the stiflening of the rail at the joint through thebase-plate under the joint, which extends not only under the railsbetween the two ties, but continuously across the adjacent ties andimparts stiffness to the entire rail structure, so that the usualdeflection of the track when the train passes over it does not takeplace. The base-bars extend under the rails and preferably meet eachother on one of the ties, the body of one bar extending part way acrossthe kerf of the tie and the body of the other bar extending in likemanner on the opposite side, as shown at 19 in Figs. 2 and 6. Theshoulder 10 on the base-bar does not necessarily extend higher than theregular rail flange 8, so that the spikes 11 can be driven eitheroutside of the shoulder extending over onto the rail or through holes orslots 16, formed in the angle-bars 17, and supporting base-bars 4 fortheir reception.

The tracks may be laid as above indicated by the employment either ofties having the kerfs previously formed in them, in which case as thekerfs are made of exact distance apart and the rail structures are madeto exact gage and a perfect gage of track is obtained, the track beinglaid in the usual or any approved way by the employment of stone orother ballast. If desired, the track may also be regularly laid, theties being properly ballasted, and by means of a suitable machine thekerfs being then cut in the ties and the rail structure secured inplace. This course may also be followed in applying the invention to atrack already laid where the supporting base-bar is placed under railspreviously used. The rails may be unspiked and moved to one side on theties and temporarily spiked thereto or the ties moved underneath therails, the kerfs cut in the ties, the basebars seated in the kerfs soformed, and the ties and rails brought into proper alinement, and therails then spiked or otherwise secured to the ties While resting on thebase-bars.

As above stated, by the employment of the invention practically perfectalinement of the rails is obtained and there is practically no liabilityof the spreading of the track, since the depending ribs fitting in thekerfs are supported against said spreading action by the full width ofthe tie, and as the grain of the tie in wooden ties is cut across informing the kerf and the tie-body extends for a foot and a half or morebeyond the rail, and, further, as the rail structure rests directly uponthe tie and binds the parts firmly together and prevents the outwardstrain from raising the wood under the pressure brought upon thedownwardly-projecting rib there is practically no liability of the woodof the tie yielding under the strain. The rail and its supportingbase-bar also cover the tie and the kerf formed in it and prevent theentrance of water into the kerf, so that there is little or no liabilityof the rotting of the tie on account of the cutting of the kerf acrossthe same. The track as so formed is stiff enough to sustain much heavierloads than the ordinary track, while the flange portion of the rail isnot raised to any appreciable extent above the supporting-ties, and thediificulty of the leverage incident to the employment of a higher railis overcome. This stiffness is obtained both through the body of thesupporting base-bar and its continuous rib extending under the rail, andthe strength of the rail to resist loads is thereby nearly doubledwithout raising the load any farther above the supporting cross-tie.

In the use of the compound rail structure the supporting base-barperforms all the functions of the ordinary bridge or bracing plate underthe suspended joint, and as it extends across many ties distributes thepeculiar strain brought upon the rail at the joint fora considerabledistance along the track it forms a practically continuous rail at thejoint, as well as in the body, since the joint of the basebar is at adistance from the joint of the rail proper.

The base-bar of the compound rail structure can be made at low cost byremoving the head from and rerolling old rails, and they will be ofgreat value in providing for the stiflening of both the light rails nowin use on roads where, though not subjected to heavy strains, the weightof the rolling-stock is increased and also in connection with theheavier rails on main lines where the greatest stiffness of rail isdesired on account of I the great increase in weight of the loadscarried and the higher speed attained.

Modifications ofv the invention may of course be made without departingfrom the 5 broad principle herein set forth.

What I claim is 1 The combination with the rails, of a series ofcross-ties having transverse grooves or kerfs in their upper faces, andrail supporting base bars having longitudinally dependingstrengthening-ribs seated in the kerfs of the cross-ties andupwardly-projecting shoulders on their outer edges to receive the outerthrust of the rails resting on the base-bars, the rail- 5 supportingbars extending continuously under the rails.

2. The combination with the rails, of a series of cross-tles havingtransverse grooves or kerfs formed therein, and supporting basebarsseated on the cross-ties and having upwardlyextending shoulders on theirouter edges to receive the outward thrust of the rails resting on thebase-bars, the rail-supporting bars extending'continuously under therail.

'GoLDIE, have hereunto set my hand.

WILLIAM GOLDIE.

Witnesses:

' ROBERT C. TOTTEN,

G. (J. RAYMOND.

